Land-based, closed containment salmon aquaculture involves rearing salmon from smolt to adult in recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS). Unlike in open-net pen aquaculture, rearing conditions can be specified in RAS in order to optimize growth and physiological stress tolerance. The environmental conditions that yield optimal stress tolerance in salmon are, however, unknown. To address this knowledge gap, we reared Atlantic (Salmo salar) and coho (Oncorhynchus kisutch) salmon in 7 separate RASs for 400days post-smoltification under 2 photoperiods (24:0 or 12:12, light:dark) and 4 salinities (2.5, 5, 10 or 30ppt.) and assessed the effects of these conditions on thermal tolerance. We found that over the first 120days post-smoltification, rearing coho under a 24:0 photoperiod resulted in a ~2 degrees C lower critical thermal maxima (CTmax) than in coho reared under a 12:12 photoperiod. This photoperiod effect did not persist at 200 and 400days, which was coincident with an overall decrease in CTmax in coho. Finally, Atlantic salmon had a higher CTmax (~28 degrees C) compared to coho (~26 degrees C) at 400days post-smoltification. Overall, these findings are important for the future implications of RAS and for the aquaculture industry to help identify physiologically sensitive time stages.